Defrocked Shaolin abbot given 24 years in prison for embezzlement

The former head of China’s famed Shaolin Temple was sentenced to 24 years in jail for crimes including embezzlement and bribery that spanned three decades, a court said on Friday.

Liu Yingcheng, who as abbot went by the name Shi Yongxin, was removed from his post in July 2025 for “extremely” bad behaviour.

He was […] ...